Preds vs. Pens will be a Battle of Passion vs. Precision

I’ll admit I wasn’t totally excited about the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals match-up of the Nashville Predators vs. Pittsburgh Penguins …until… I ran their latest roster allocations and noticed how interesting and close this match-up really is.

Aggression Match-Up

Winner: Pens

Each team in the league has a unique temperament and skill set that is magnified under game-time conditions. I call this the “aggression” or “war time” capabilities and to identify this we specifically look at their Mars allocation. When it comes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, or any short tournament style format, historically teams with a combined Fire and Earth Mars allocation greater than 50% have the highest odds of winning. At this point in the playoffs, with the current active players Mars allocations have shifted slightly due to injury and roster tweaks, giving the Penguins a slight edge.

Even with the line changes and injuries, the Pens have a balanced Mars allocation giving them the ability to mix and match players in game-time scenarios and get meaningful results. They have fewer players with volatile mental games and can tolerate varying game-day planetary influences. With 55% of their players in Fire and Earth signs, they have a comprehensive leg up on the Predators 42%.

This basically means that execution, work ethic, and endurance come more easily to the Penguins regardless of taxing schedules and astrological influences. Nashville lacks confident Fire signs and instead weighs 37% Water signs — a potential liability for them. This allocation shifted radically with the loss of Johansson and Fiala. While the Water sign contributors have the potential to have much needed explosive showings, they also have the potential to be careless and mismanage their energy levels.

If we factor only physical and mental readiness into this… the Penguins would win this over the 7 games series. They simply have the depth of temperament to provide effective performances night after night.

Passion Match-Up

Winner: Preds

While Penguins have the execution dialed in, the Predators take the passion to a whole new level. A team’s Venus allocation is key to offsetting any deficit or weakness in their ability to execute (Mars Allocation.) The Venus allocation is often how teams who maybe shouldn’t win on paper, somehow dig deep in mental and physical reserves to come back from large deficits.

Nashville brings a tremendous amount of Fire to their game. Their current roster is 42% Fire sign players. This means their driving force — the reason these guys play hockey — is to fuel their ego, pride and competitive spirit. They have something to prove and the confidence to do whatever it takes which for many athletes is half of the battle.

The Penguins also have a healthy Venus allocation. They carry a 30% Fire Allocation and it is evident in their passionate playing style and ability to over come teams like the Washington Capitals. However, their 30% Air signs hurts them when pitted against Nashville’s Fire sign edge. Air sign players are more logical and practical — sometimes lacking the passion to dig deep when needed. They prefer to conserve energy and regroup and take back control in the next period or even next game. In a regular season game this is generally ok, but no team in a playoff can afford anyone who is not 100% emotionally vested in every single game. The Penguin’s have the potential to “rest on their laurels” if they aren’t careful. Coach Sullivan will need to keep this from becoming an issue.

Nashville’s ambitious attitude on the bench will fuel their series run. Expect them to put in performances that drive late game pushes and keep the Penguins on their toes.

Both teams have less than 15% of their players with Venus Water signs which is key for avoiding distracting drama on the bench in times when trailing in a game. This is not surprising to see from two teams who have progressed this far in the series.

Who Will Prevail

While the Predators have proven they have what it takes to take out strong teams, they haven’t really been taxed with an all-out 7 game series with little to no break. The Penguins come in with depth, playoff experience and an astrologically well rounded roster.

This series will be close and it will largely come down to very subtle game night influences. Here’s what is happening astrologically each night of the series. Each game day we will be publishing favored players and teams so be sure to follow us on twitter @zodiachockey.com

Monday, May 29th

NSH @ PIT 8pm EST

Moon in Leo 8:12am, Mars Opposite Saturn 2:55 am

Wednesday, May 31st

NSH @ PIT 8pm EST

Moon in Virgo 12:16pm; Mercury trine Pluto 8:03pm

These players will be feeling added focus and/or intensity which will be favorable if given the ice time and opportunities.

Saturday, June 3rd

PIT @ NSH 8pm EST

Tonight’s Moon in Libra brings balance and calm to several players. However the Moon moves conjuct jupiter late in the game 9:44pm creating potential for a late game push. Venus conjuct Uranus this morning fueled a sense of unpredictability- expect to see some surprises from players who normally would play with more consistency. The following players are feeling the bulk of the impact of tonight’s busy planetary shifts.

Monday, June 5th

PIT @ NSH 8pm EST

Moon in Scorpio 6:46 am

This game is going to be extremely physical and expect a lot of chirping. Early in the day the moon is very active brewing high emotions into the water sign heavy players. By the time the puck drops several players will be feeling a sense of purpose and intensity that one might not normally expect from a Game 4. The Predators have a slight advantage on this game day, however, when the moon is this volatile it generally results in explosive performances both good and bad. So while the Predators have more players feeling highly emotional they may find it backfires on them if they are unable to execute carefully. The refs will also be feeling powerful and likely to make controversial calls.

Thursday, June 8th

NSH @ PIT 8pm EST

Moon in Sagittarius, Moon sextile Jupiter 9:42pm

This game is a fairly even footing for the first two periods. But by the third period certain players will see a confidence boost from the Moon Sextile Jupiter. Penguins definitely look to have the stronger third period showing.

About author

Jessica Abel

Ten years of astrology and entertainment publishing experience combined with a love of sports and all things competitive, I write about what drives people toward greatness. Writing, consulting and providing insightful perspectives to athletes, coaches and teams is what I get paid to do.